come, look
see painted walls

see crime
see heart
see the last light fall
on abandoned halls

hear the running still
of a silvery river
through slivers
of a stricken city

time rushed away

run your fingers
up the rusted rails
flanking gate and chain
and with the same disdain
they show you

climb steady

taste the silt
stand
with wilted pillars
drunk on verdant shores

breathe a new sound
feel the stifled air
of a cloudless night
languish in your lungs

come, look
fresh walls to paint